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Saturday, March 8, 2014

When I painted Lori Marx-Rubiner’s jacket the lights were
flickering in the high winter winds.
My eldest son complained about the constant loss of WIFI. I called a Comcast technician and
continued to paint. When the
technician arrived he showed me wires that were melted due to power surges and
encouraged me to call the electric company. I called them and they sent someone out. The technician inspected the high wires
and explained the problem. We had lost our neutral ground and our house needed
regrounding.

So I was
inspired by a life that I read about and I life I lived as I painted
“Regrounding.”

Lori has been through a lot shocks in her life. She is a 12-year breast cancer
survivor. She was diagnosed at 35 after having a baseline mammography. She was married with a three old son
when she was dealt this blow. She
rapidly went from a “why me” mentality to the stance of an empowered
patient. She fought cancer, but
she did not fight alone.

Her entire community stood beside her. That is a wonderful thing. A family going through cancer treatment so desperately needs the support of a wider community. In the years, hence Lori has become part
of an even larger community of advocates.
She speaks out about cancer and breast cancer and attends medical
conferences to share the patient view.

In 2009, her doctor told Lori that her tumor markers were
up. She was scanned and there were
signs of healed bone metastases.
She is taking medication to heal the bones and injections to keep
hormone levels low.

She is regrounding.
Cancer may be her constant companion, but so is her local
community. She is taking the energy
that pulses through her and channeling it through her Judaic faith and her
wider advocacy. She is one with
the solid ground that supports so many.
That same ground will someday embrace her.

In a life we are blessed with so much energy. That energy can be used in destructive
ways or for healing. Lori has
chosen to be a grounding agent, and thereby helps so many.

The Walking Gallery Mini Doc

About Me

Regina Holliday is a resident of Grantsville, Maryland. She serves on the board of the local non-profit The Highland Thrift Shop. She is a member of the Grantsville Rotary Club. She is also Asst. Cubmaster of Pack 460 Cub Scouts.

In addition, Regina serves as a parent advisor to the Garrett County School Board Health Advisory Committee. She is also a member of the Garrett County Chamber of Commerce and The Garrett County Arts Council.

Ms. Holliday is an activist, artist, speaker and author. You might see her at a health conference painting the content she hears from the patient view. She is part the movement known as participatory medicine. She and others in this movement believe that the patient is a partner with their provider and both should work together as a team.

Regina is a mother and a widow; she speaks about the benefits of health information technology and timely data access for patients due to her family loss. In 2009, she painted a series of murals depicting the need for clarity and transparency in medical records. This advocacy mission was inspired by her late husband Frederick Allen Holliday II and his struggle to get appropriate care during 11 weeks of continuous hospitalization at 5 facilities. Her paintings became part of the national debate on health care reform and helped guide public policy.

She also began an advocacy movement called “The Walking Gallery.” The Gallery consists of medical providers and advocates who wear patient story paintings on the backs of business suits. Paint and patients, pills and policy all come together within The Walking Gallery of Healthcare. This "walking wall" of 330+ individuals who wear personal patient narrative paintings on their backs is changing minds and opening hearts. They are attending medical conferences where often there isn’t a patient speaker on the dais or in the audience. They are providing a patient voice, and by doing so, are changing the conversation.

She published a book with the Health Informatics Society of Australia (HISA) entitled: "The Walking Wall: 73 Cents to the Walking Gallery."